Refrigerator-car.



W. E. SHARP.

REFRIGERATOR GAR.

APPLICATION rum) APR. 29, 1909.

1,1 16,937. Patented Nov. 10, 1914.

w?" Mam 6 37 1 WILLIAM n. sIIARr,' or

UNITED: STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGN OR 0F ONE-HALF T0 GEORGE B.

ROBBINS, or HInsnALn LL noIs.

Specification of Letters Patent.

REFRIGERATOR-CAR.

I Patented Nov. 10, 1914.

Application filed April 29, 1909. Serial no. 492,983.

and has reference more especially to means.

for controlling the disposal of thebrine accumulating in the usual iceand brine tanks carried by such cars.

The damage done by salt water dripping from refrigerator cars and comingin contact with the steel rails, bridges, cattle guards, etc, hasreached such proporations that the railroads have issued a prohibitionagainst this practice, and thus made it necessary to provide some meansof controlling and disposing of the brine in a manner to avoid injury totracks and track equipment.

The object of the present invention is to provide means of control suchthat the brine may be carried and disposed of at such times and placesas may be designated.

In its broadest aspect the invention con-- templates the equipment ofthe ice and brine tank or tanks with a valve or valves which will remainclosed during the run, but which may be readily opened at icing stationsorother designated pointsto permit of the drawing off of the accumulatedbrine.

My invention further contemplates the provision of means whereby aportion of the brine accumulating during the run between such stationsor points may be drawn oil? from the iceand brine tank or tanks so as toavoid a diminution of the refrigerating eiiiciency of said tank ortanks, and be stored in condition. for subsequent discharge. Such brinestorage receptacle may be carried beneath the car; or, where theconstruction of car and tanks will permit, it may be carried within thecar so as to add its own refrigerating effect to that of the ice andbrine tank or tanks.

In the accompanying drawing I have illustrated a practical embodiment ofthe invention as applied to one form of ice and brine tanks; andreferring thereto, the figure is a fragmentary vertical section throughthe lower portion of the car. end, wherein a brine reservoir adapted tocarry the surplus brine is located within the car directly beneath theice and brine tank, and

is provided with an automatic overflow from the ice and brine tank. v

If the brine is drawn off from the ice and brine tanks between stationswithout ,provlsion for storing the I brine, there is, of

course, a considerable loss of refrigerating efiiciency; and thesacrifice of this eliiciency may be avoided where theinteriorconstruction and arrangement of-the car will permitfit, bylocating a brine storage tank or reservolr'within the car. Such anarrangement isiillustrated in the drawing-,-wherein a brine reservoir inthe form of a cooling coil or battery of connected pipes-is indicated at41 directly beneath and communicating with the conical bottom 16 of theme and brine tank 16; an ordinary slidevalve 19 controlling suchcommunication, and the brine reservoir being provided with a dlschargepipe 43 extending through the floor of the car and equipped at its lowerend with an ordinary delivery cook or faucet 44. In this connection Ihave also shown a means for. automatically draining the ice I and brinetank into the brine reservoir; the

same comprising an over-flow pipe 45 that communicates freely at itsupper end with the tank 16, as shown at 46, and at its lower end withthe reservoir 41, as shown at 47. The pipe 45 will, in practice,communicate with the tank 16 at such a height thereon as corresponds tothe level at which the brine accumulating in said tank reaches anobjectionable amount relatively to the refrigerating efficiency of thetank. By this means the excess of brine in the ice and brine tank ortanks is automatically drained off, but a 1 considerable refrigeratingeiiiciency which such brine possesses is utilized through its storage inthe reservoir or cooling coil 41, until the next icing station isreached.

From the foregoing it will be evident that my invention provides asimpleand eflicient means for preventing the injury to railway tracksand track accessories which hasheretofore resulted from the uncheckeddripping and draining of salt water from the ice and brine tanks;provides a means for quickly discharging the accumulated brine when anicing station or other draining point has been reached; and, further,provides a means whereby the aforesaid objects may be attained withoutany substantial impairment of the refrigerating efliciency the ice andbrine tanks in transit.

It will be manifest to those skilled in the art that the principle ofthe invention and the useful results flowing therefrom may be embodiedin and secured by other forms'of the invention than those hereinillustrated and described. Hence, it should be understood that theinvention is not limited to, the

particular apparatus disclosed, except to the extent clearly indicatedinspecific claims.

I claim:

1. In a refrigerator car, the combination of an ice and brine tankhaving a discharge opening above the bottom of said tank and of an iceand brine tank, a brine reservoir for receiving brine from said tank, avalve between said reservoir and said tank, a pipe connecting said tankWith said brine reservoir, whereby the brine in said tank will .be

maintained at a constant level, an outlet pipe for said reservoir, and avalve in said outlet pipe, substantially as described.

3. In a refrigerator car, the combination 'of an ice and brine tank, anauxiliary refrigerating receptacle, means for automatically dischargingan excess portion of the brine in said tank into said auxiliaryreceptacle, hand controlled means for emptying all of the briny contentsof said tank into said receptacle, and hand controlled means fordischarging the contents of said auxiliary receptacle, substantially asdescribed. WILLIAM E. SHARP. Witnesses:

RoB'r. W. ALLEN, B. F. OCoNNoR.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents.

' Washington, D. 0.

